Newland H. Holmes
Encyclopedia
Newland H. Holmes was a Massachusetts politician who served as President of the Massachusetts Senate
from 1957 to 1958. He was born in Brockton, Massachusetts
.
Holmes was a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives
from five years before moving to the Senate in 1929. He was the Senate Majority Leader from 1955 to 1956.
In 1956, Richard I. Furbush did not run for re-election and Holmes sought to succeed him as Senate President. At the Republican caucus held before the floor vote, Holmes lost to Senator Philip A. Graham fifteen votes to six. However, Holmes chose not to abide by the caucus decision and ran against Graham and Democratic leader John E. Powers
for the Senate Presidency.
On the first ballot, Powers received the vote of all nineteen Democrats while the Republican vote was split between Graham (sixteen votes) and Holmes (five votes). Powers preferred Holmes to Graham and after a lengthy caucus with the Democrats, he was able to convince fifteen Democrats to support Holmes. On the second ballot, Holmes won the Presidency with twenty votes to Graham's sixteen and Powers' four.
Holmes remained President until the Republicans lost their majority following the 1958 election. He remained in the Senate until he was defeated by William Weeks, the son of former United States Secretary of Commerce
and United States Senator
Sinclair Weeks
, in 1964. Holmes' thirty-six year tenure in the Massachusetts Senate is the longest in that body's history.
Massachusetts Senate
The Massachusetts Senate is the upper house of the Massachusetts General Court, the bicameral state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. The Senate comprises 40 elected members from 40 single-member senatorial districts in the state...
from 1957 to 1958. He was born in Brockton, Massachusetts
Brockton, Massachusetts
Brockton is a city in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States; the population was 93,810 in the 2010 Census. Brockton, along with Plymouth, are the county seats of Plymouth County...
.
Holmes was a member of the Massachusetts House of Representatives
Massachusetts House of Representatives
The Massachusetts House of Representatives is the lower house of the Massachusetts General Court, the state legislature of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts. It is composed of 160 members elected from single-member electoral districts across the Commonwealth. Representatives serve two-year terms...
from five years before moving to the Senate in 1929. He was the Senate Majority Leader from 1955 to 1956.
In 1956, Richard I. Furbush did not run for re-election and Holmes sought to succeed him as Senate President. At the Republican caucus held before the floor vote, Holmes lost to Senator Philip A. Graham fifteen votes to six. However, Holmes chose not to abide by the caucus decision and ran against Graham and Democratic leader John E. Powers
John E. Powers
John E. Powers was an American politician who served as President of the Massachusetts Senate from 1959 to 1964....
for the Senate Presidency.
On the first ballot, Powers received the vote of all nineteen Democrats while the Republican vote was split between Graham (sixteen votes) and Holmes (five votes). Powers preferred Holmes to Graham and after a lengthy caucus with the Democrats, he was able to convince fifteen Democrats to support Holmes. On the second ballot, Holmes won the Presidency with twenty votes to Graham's sixteen and Powers' four.
Holmes remained President until the Republicans lost their majority following the 1958 election. He remained in the Senate until he was defeated by William Weeks, the son of former United States Secretary of Commerce
United States Secretary of Commerce
The United States Secretary of Commerce is the head of the United States Department of Commerce concerned with business and industry; the Department states its mission to be "to foster, promote, and develop the foreign and domestic commerce"...
and United States Senator
United States Senate
The United States Senate is the upper house of the bicameral legislature of the United States, and together with the United States House of Representatives comprises the United States Congress. The composition and powers of the Senate are established in Article One of the U.S. Constitution. Each...
Sinclair Weeks
Sinclair Weeks
Charles Sinclair Weeks , better known as Sinclair Weeks, was United States Secretary of Commerce from January 21, 1953 to November 10, 1958 under Dwight D. Eisenhower...
, in 1964. Holmes' thirty-six year tenure in the Massachusetts Senate is the longest in that body's history.